• There is a Copyright notice on the item
  • A Copyright notice is normally necessary but not sufficient for a valid Copyright.
    
    • It was easy to add a Copyright notice to a work. It was harder to complete and file the necessary paperwork. A certain percentage of individuals and companies never filed, even though they had a full 28 years in which to do so. For example, Bailey Films put a Copyright notice on the opening credits for their 1968 film "Marijuana". No record of any registration can be found. If the item you are interested in has a Copyright notice, it still is a good idea to  Do a Copyright Search Yourself or have a Professional Copyright Search done. For pre-1978 works, if no Copyright registration is found, the Copyright notice has no effect and the work is probably public domain. 

• Is the Copyright Notice correct?
  • For works published before 1978, the law was strict and unforgiving.  A Copyright notice consisted of three parts; "Copyright", "Year", and "Copyright Owner". Check all three of these elements for an error that invalidates any Copyright registration.
  • Copyright
  • Does the notice contain  the word "Copyright" or the abbreviation "Copr." or the symbol © (or  the letter "P" in a circle for a phonorecord)?
  • Leaving out this part of the notice is the same as no notice in the eyes of the law. (U.S. Copyright Office Circular 3)
  • Year
  • Is the Year in the notice more than one year later than the date of first "publication" as defined by the Copyright Act ?
  • The later notice year invalidates the Copyright. (Code of Federal Regulations Title 37 Section 202.2.)
  • Note that pictorial, graphic or sculptural works did not have to have a year in the notice
  • Copyright Owner
  • Does it not contain a name that could reasonably be considered part of the notice?
  • Leaving out this part of the notice is the same as no notice in the eyes of the law. (U.S. Copyright Office Circular 3)
  • Other Concerns
  • Some courts were liberal in overlooking minor mistakes in form or position.
  • Unauthorized or "Bootleg" Editions
  • An unauthorized copy, featuring an incorrect Copyright notice, does not affect the validity of the Copyright in the work  (Copyright Office Circular 22)

• The Copyright Notice is Missing
  • As a general rule, if an authorized edition of a work published in the U.S. before 1978 did not have a proper Copyright notice, the work went into the public domain.
  • There are exceptions
    • Check all over for the Copyright notice. Most categories of works have the Copyright notice in an obvious or traditional place. Some works (like fabrics)  may have become separated from a notice placed on a tag or label or margin. For a  summary of Copyright notice positions, see  U.S. Copyright Office Circular 3 .  The complete regulations are contained in Code of Federal Regulations Title 37 Section 201.20.
    • Copyright Notice Mistakes
      • The 1909 Copyright Statute preserved Copyright protection if the notice was omitted by accident or mistake from a particular copy or copies. (Copyright Office Circular 22)
  • Your item may not be an authorized edition of a work published in the U.S. before 1978
    • Foreign Editions or of Foreign Origin with Missing Copyright Notice
      • Items with a missing notice may be foreign editions of a U.S. Copyrighted work that somehow found its way here. The Copyright for the U.S. edition may be in force.  (Copyright Office Circular 22)
    • Unauthorized or "Bootleg" Editions
      • An unauthorized copy, missing the Copyright notice, does not affect the validity of the Copyright in the work   (Copyright Office Circular 22)
    • Unpublished Works
      • No notice of Copyright was needed for unpublished works. According to the definition of "publication" in the Copyright Act, it is possible to make and distribute a number of copies and still be considered an unpublished work.  Pre-1978 Unpublished works are protected for author(s) life plus 70 years.  (Copyright Office Circular 22)  A pre-1978 unpublished work would not have a Copyright registration. To verify it has no registration and is therefore an unpublished work,  Do a Copyright search yourself or have a Professional Copyright Search done. If a registration turns up, then there is no Copyright notice on the item and it is probably public domain. (See all of the above section "The Copyright Notice is Missing " for details and exceptions) 
    • Works created since March 1, 1989 no longer need a Copyright notice (U.S. Copyright Office Circular 3)   

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